Royal Caribbean – Mariner of the Seas – JahBella Part 4 (Ice-Skating and a Parenting lesson for me)

I have to say that I was super proud of Jah during this cruise trip. Not only was he a lot nicer to his sister and really attempted to take care of her. He had even at some point during the trip, asked that they take a professional photo together and said that he would hold her hand. (That shot was almost successful until the photographer asked them to step back alittle and then his sister fell backwards into the backdrop :x)

That aside, Jah made his first attempt at ice-skating! Well ok mummy and daddy also made their first attempt at it and honestly it was a mean feat for 3 people with no experience in ice-skating to hold onto each other while ‘skating’ around the edge of the rink. Jah showed us his determination and perseverance in wanting to do more rounds despite it being a pretty scary and difficult first try around the rink. We could tell he was giving his best even though his legs were all jelly by the time he got through round 2.

First session of the morning (there were 3 one-hour sessions in all)

Skaters getting fitted out for their session

Waiting for our session to start (can barely contain his glee!)

Jah’s first attempt at ice-skating also taught me a very important lesson in parenting. The first thing he said to me at the end of the session was “mummy? I’m not very good at ice-skating.” That statement shocked me at first and then my heart broke alittle. I didn’t quite know how to respond immediately. I realized that somehow along the way, my 3 year old was starting to feel the pressures of today’s society, to perform and excel at everything he does even if it was the first time he was attempting something. Trying hard was not good enough. He had to be very good at it.

I was thankful for this insight in his thoughts. I almost instinctively replied no, you are awesome at ice-skating which he would definitely have figured for a lie. Instead I told him that yes, just like him, mummy and papa were not very good at ice-skating too but it was our first try. The most important thing was the fact that we tried our best and maybe next time we will be better at it or maybe we won’t be. He is good at a lot of other things and as long as he enjoyed himself earlier, it really doesn’t matter.

I could see the relief written all over his face after that and he perked up and said that he wanted to try ice-skating again next time. 🙂 Phew for mummy too!

A point to note for those who would like to attempt ice-skating onboard the ship, do remember to bring socks and be dressed in long pants. Helmets, ice-skates and knee guards will be provided. Oh yes and a sweater especially for the kids would be helpful (it was freezing!).